Kmart reports "layaway archangel" gave top donation of $20,543

(Reuters) - A Kmart in Maryland was visited by the archangel of all so-called "layaway angels," who made the single largest donation in the United States and bought holiday gifts for 175 shoppers, a company spokeswoman said on Friday.

"Layaway angels" is the name given to anonymous donors who, perhaps motivated by the dour financial situation of many Christmas shoppers this year, pay off layaway accounts used by customers to finance gifts in installments.

An unnamed person donated $20,543 to pay for gifts financed on layaway by customers at a Kmart about 50 miles southeast of Washington, said Shannelle Armstrong, a spokeswoman for Sears Holding Corp, which owns Kmart.

It is the biggest known layaway donation this year, she said. Such donations have occurred in the past, but this year's response has been the largest, according to Armstrong. As of Thursday evening, more than $450,000 in layaway payments had been made by about 1,000 donors.

The first reported donation came in Michigan in early December and donors have since appeared in other states across the country.